Josh Anderson: On the Road to Recovery

In January, skier Josh Anderson had an unfortunate mishap with a tree at the bottom of ‘The Claw” on the south-side of Teton Pass, and he unwantingly was forced to call on Teton County Search and Rescue for help (see previous post). Josh suffered a compound fracture of his left femur, and a piece of his right fibula also broke off as a result of the accident.

Last week, Josh and his folks threw a little get together to say thanks to those that helped with his rescue and recovery…which is a pretty big list, all things considered. It was good to see Josh again, I had met him a few times in the hills prior to the incident and I could tell he had the passion for skiing. He is currently recovering nicely, but not without hurdles.

Surprisingly enough, Josh had to under go two settings of his femur. The first didn’t got too well, and he was left with his leg mis-aligned…and rotated inward, by about 45°. Not wanting to have to snow-plow the rest of his skiing career, his leg needed to be re-broken and new rods placed inside. Fear of blood clots also became and issue, and he was transported to Idaho Falls for more advanced treatment and supervision.

Josh seems to be in good spirits these days and tries to learn from what happened…trying to get something out of the whole ordeal. Of course his parents can think of a grocery list of things, but Josh keeps it in perspective…saying, “ski today….so I can ski tomorrow”. Good advice Josh!